I have been examining this (Gennochio-Foisor) sacrifice for about three hours on my own and with the aid of various engines.

It does look like White has sufficient compensation for the piece after all, but I don't think this is the sort of attack that plays itself. I usually play the Winawer or ...Nf6 Tarrasch, but I would be glad to defend this. As chk pointed out, good defensive players flourish when they, well, defend.

After 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3/d2 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Bd7 5.Nf3 Bc6 6.Neg5 Bd6 7.Nxf7 Kxf7 8.Ng5+ Ke8 9.Nxe6 Qf6 10.Bc4 b5(this move is useful in the line below since it makes room for the Bc6 to retreat and forces White to give up the f1-a6 diagonal) 11 Bb3, I would be strongly tempted to play, in place of the (probably objectively best) move 11...Qg6, the interesting line 11...Bxg2!? 12 Rg1 Qf3! (the point) when most White players would be shocked at such a rapid forced queen trade (13.Be2 is no longer possible because of ...b5, and 13.Qd2 is met by Qe4+). Many would develop the Bc1 or take the pawn on g6 with check. But these cede Black an advantage. The only good move is psychologically harder to find than the easy tactic it is based on would suggest, because White retreats a piece and actually forces the queen trade to happen on the very next move: 13.Ng5! which after 13...Qxd1 14.Kxd1 Bb7 (14...Nf6 Rxg2 gives White too much activity, e.g. 15.Nc6 Nf7 16.Rf8 Rxg7) 15.Nf7 Bxh2 16.Re1 Kf8 wins back a rook to go up the exchange in a mutually awkward "fourth stage" position. Different engines evaluate this differently (Rybka is the kindest to Black, giving White less than a +.75-pawn advantage), but I think all engines underestimate the importance that Black's protected passed wing pawn will take on as the endgame coalesces. Honestly, I must admit I don't think Black has full compensation for the exchange, but OTB I would probably venture it. Even if White finds 13.Ng5, Black certainly won't be mated quickly.

[quote author=0E302B27283F394A0 link=1280902611/10#10 date=1281079705]By the way, I would like to ask:

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 d:e4 4.N:e4 Bd7 5.Nf3 Bc6 6.Neg5

and now some books give 6...Nd7 as weak move (?)but does anybody know a clear way to white advantage after:

7.N:f7 K:f7 8.Ng5+ Ke8?[/Good question. McDonald talks about 6... Nd7 and even gives it a question mark indicating he believes it's a bad move. Yet, then goes on to say that it led to a quick draw in a game he played. After 8... Ke8 it went 9.Nxe6? (A ? but he doesn't say what he thinks is better) Qe7 10.Qe2 Kf7 11.Ng5+ Ke8 12.Ne6 Kf7 with a repetition. My guess is that he thinks 6... Nd7 is worse than 6... Bd6 because it allows White to sac a piece and force a draw.

McDonald states in the note on the next page (89) that he thinks 9. Bc4! (his !) is better, because it gives white a strong initiative. But he doesn't follow that up with any specific moves or analysis, since his point is to focus on a better line for black, not give the details for white to attack the line that he's telling black players to avoid.

--Fromper

In his chesspub comments McD gives the game Kotronias-Franchini where white won with 9.Bc4!

[quote author=0E302B27283F394A0 link=1280902611/10#10 date=1281079705]By the way, I would like to ask:

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 d:e4 4.N:e4 Bd7 5.Nf3 Bc6 6.Neg5

and now some books give 6...Nd7 as weak move (?)but does anybody know a clear way to white advantage after:

7.N:f7 K:f7 8.Ng5+ Ke8?[/Good question. McDonald talks about 6... Nd7 and even gives it a question mark indicating he believes it's a bad move. Yet, then goes on to say that it led to a quick draw in a game he played. After 8... Ke8 it went 9.Nxe6? (A ? but he doesn't say what he thinks is better) Qe7 10.Qe2 Kf7 11.Ng5+ Ke8 12.Ne6 Kf7 with a repetition. My guess is that he thinks 6... Nd7 is worse than 6... Bd6 because it allows White to sac a piece and force a draw.

McDonald states in the note on the next page (89) that he thinks 9. Bc4! (his !) is better, because it gives white a strong initiative. But he doesn't follow that up with any specific moves or analysis, since his point is to focus on a better line for black, not give the details for white to attack the line that he's telling black players to avoid.

--Fromper

GrandPatzer!!!

1777 peak USCF rating - currently 1642 from coming back rusty, so trying to get back to that level

[quote author=0E302B27283F394A0 link=1280902611/10#10 date=1281079705]By the way, I would like to ask:

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 d:e4 4.N:e4 Bd7 5.Nf3 Bc6 6.Neg5

and now some books give 6...Nd7 as weak move (?)but does anybody know a clear way to white advantage after:

7.N:f7 K:f7 8.Ng5+ Ke8?[/Good question. McDonald talks about 6... Nd7 and even gives it a question mark indicating he believes it's a bad move. Yet, then goes on to say that it led to a quick draw in a game he played. After 8... Ke8 it went 9.Nxe6? (A ? but he doesn't say what he thinks is better) Qe7 10.Qe2 Kf7 11.Ng5+ Ke8 12.Ne6 Kf7 with a repetition. My guess is that he thinks 6... Nd7 is worse than 6... Bd6 because it allows White to sac a piece and force a draw.

It's probably just that this is a quite unusual continuation and McDonald writing from the Black side and having little belief in a hack sac like Nxf7 probably just chose one line he liked for black and then went on to more popular lines.

I also have McDonald's book, and to practice the Fort Knox, I joined a Fort Knox themed correspondence tourney (books allowed) at chess.com a few months ago. I played this way in most of my games as white, and I got a couple of fun wins out of it. I also lost a couple of games, when I failed to get enough of an attack for the sacrificed material.

All in all, it seems like a fun way to play as white against this variation, even when it doesn't work. The biggest problem is that you just aren't going to face the Fort Knox very often.

GrandPatzer!!!

1777 peak USCF rating - currently 1642 from coming back rusty, so trying to get back to that level